Was it for a lack of evidence that Dodd declined to consider at trial whether Jones sexually molested the 11-year-old girl? Or was it legal strategy? Or was it a combination of both?

Defense attorney Salvatore Lanza said Dodd didn't pursue sex-related charges against Jones when the prosecutor first presented the case to a grand jury. That, Lanza said, led him to believe Dodd doesn't have enough proof to convict Jones of molesting Maxwell before she died Aug. 30, 2008.

Medical personnel found Maxwell unconscious in her Palermo home the day before she died. Last month, her father and stepmother, Lindsey and Lynn Maxwell, were convicted of four misdemeanor counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Jones, who lived with the parents and his stepsister, is charged with second-degree murder and faces up to 25 years to life if he is convicted.

Dodd said he can't talk about the case because of a judge's order, nor can he reveal information about grand jury proceedings.

But some lawyers say it's difficult to convict someone being tried on murder charges of also sexually abusing the victim.

It's even more difficult if there is no DNA evidence linking the defendant to the sex crime, the lawyers said.

"Without a victim, without an admission (of guilt) from the defendant or some other way to connect the defendant to the crime, these cases are very difficult to prove," Cayuga County District Attorney Jon Budelmann said.

Generally, prosecutors need a victim's statement, physical evidence such as DNA, an eyewitness's corroborating account or a confession to gain a conviction in criminal cases, the lawyers said.

"The problem with murder cases is that you don't have a victim to testify," Budelmann said.

Defense lawyer Dennis Sedor, of Auburn, said it's possible that Dodd believes it's his best strategy to seek only a murder conviction against Jones -- especially if there isn't sufficient proof to show Jones molested his stepsister.

Trying to prove a second crime without solid evidence could end up confusing the jury and backfiring, Sedor said.

"You don't want to create a trial within a trial ... . That could create problems the prosecutor might not want to deal with," said Sedor, a former assistant district attorney in Cayuga County.

Cortland County District Attorney Mark Suben declined to discuss the Jones trial, but said he believes juries ascribe too much weight to DNA evidence. Earlier this year, Suben won a murder conviction largely based on circumstantial evidence.

Too many people are influenced by police drama TV shows such as "CSI" and "Law and Order," Suben said.

"DNA evidence can be valuable, but it's not as necessary as people think. The real danger is the expectations of it from people watching these TV shows. It raises the burden of proof (prosecutors) have to meet that are beyond the standards set by law. So it's a blessing and it's a curse," Suben said.

"I think Mark makes a good point," Auburn lawyer Sedor said. "You need expert witnesses to present evidence and explain how good or bad or how faulty (the evidence) could be.

"It's a strategy," he said. "(Dodd's) in the best position to do that. He knows what he does have and what he doesn't have. He's doing what he feels is putting his best foot forward."